If you’re a devotee of dark humor or an irrepressible fan of irony, you’re in luck. I have a story you’re going to love.
It’s about one of the most widely prescribed classes of heart medications in existence. But, ironically, it turns out this so-called heart protector could HARM your heart instead.
If you’ve been diagnosed with hypertension, there’s a good chance you’re on one of these drugs right now.
They’re supposed to help protect your heart and reduce your biggest risks by relaxing and opening your arteries.
But new research has revealed the ugly truth about these common medications taken by millions every day. They could hurt or even kill you.
Because, despite being designed to protect the heart, they could actually WEAKEN it. In fact, they may even lead directly to heart failure.
Hypertension drug linked to a DEADLY risk
Heart failure is deadly. It has an almost 50 percent death rate over five years. And even before it kills you, it can wreck your quality of life in the years you have left.
It makes it difficult to just get up and move, leaving you winded just rising from a chair. Plus, the bone-wearying fatigue it causes can keep you from doing the things you love the most.
And now we know that one of the most popular classes of blood pressure drugs, L-type calcium channel blockers, could contribute to this terrible condition. In fact, researchers say LCCBs can cause some of the very same types of damage you’re trying to prevent by taking them.
The drugs target a specific problem inside your blood vessels.
When too much calcium slips into the smooth muscle cells of the vessel walls, it causes them to thicken and stiffen. This leads to a narrowing of your arteries, which drives your blood pressure up.
LCCBs are supposed to stop that process. The trouble is the new study finds they could also CAUSE it through a completely different process.
Swap your blood pressure med for THIS instead
The new study was done on animals, so more research is needed to confirm the effect in humans. But the Penn State team behind the study made a frightening discovery.
When they examined the records from the university database, they found that patients on LCCBs for hypertension had a SIGNIFICANTLY higher heart failure rate than those treated with other medications. And while the link doesn’t prove the drugs caused all of those cases, it IS a very smoky gun.
Naturally, the team is calling for “caution” with the use of these drugs. And reading between the lines, it’s implied that people taking these drugs should consider switching to another type of med. But that could be jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.
For example, a study I shared earlier this week found that women who take beta-blockers also face a higher risk of heart failure. And many blood pressure meds can lead to dizziness, falls, and in some cases, have even been linked to memory loss and dementia.
In other words, you may just be trading one set of scary risks for another. But for many folks, there’s a better way to cut BP.
A compound called natto, isolated from fermented Japanese soybeans, was shown to cut systolic blood pressure by almost 14 points and diastolic BP by nearly six points in overweight volunteers. And unlike some blood pressure meds natto PROTECTS against heart problems instead of causing them.
Talk with your doc about giving natto a try. You can find it as a stand-alone supplement. But for even more protection, look for natto as part of a comprehensive cardiovascular blend.
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